Psalms 18

The LORD Praised for Giving Deliverance.

1 "I love You, O LORD, my strength."

2 The LORD is ¹my rock and ²my fortress and my ³deliverer, My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge; My ⁴shield and the ⁵horn of my salvation, my ⁶stronghold.

3 I call upon the LORD, who is ⁷worthy to be praised, And I am ⁸saved from my enemies.

4 The ⁹cords of death encompassed me, And the ¹⁰torrents of ungodliness terrified me.

5 The ¹¹cords of Sheol surrounded me; The snares of death confronted me.

6 In my ¹²distress I called upon the LORD, And cried to my God for help; He heard my voice ¹³out of His temple, And my ¹⁴cry for help before Him came into His ears.

7 Then the ¹⁵earth shook and quaked; And the ¹⁶foundations of the mountains were trembling And were shaken, because He was angry.

8 Smoke went up out of His nostrils, And ¹⁷fire from His mouth devoured; Coals were kindled by it.

9 He ¹⁸bowed the heavens also, and came down With thick ¹⁹darkness under His feet.

10 He rode upon a ²⁰cherub and flew; And He sped upon the ²¹wings of the wind.

11 He made ²²darkness His hiding place, ²³His canopy around Him, Darkness of waters, thick clouds of the skies.

12 From the ²⁴brightness before Him passed His thick clouds, Hailstones and ²⁵coals of fire.

13 The LORD also ²⁶thundered in the heavens, And the Most High uttered His voice, Hailstones and coals of fire.

14 He ²⁷sent out His arrows, and scattered them, And lightning flashes in abundance, and routed them.

15 Then the ²⁸channels of water appeared, And the foundations of the world were laid bare At Your ²⁹rebuke, O LORD, At the blast of the ³⁰breath of Your nostrils.

16 He ³¹sent from on high, He took me; He drew me out of ³²many waters.

17 He ³³delivered me from my strong enemy, And from those who hated me, for they were ³⁴too mighty for me.

18 They confronted me in ³⁵the day of my calamity, But ³⁶the LORD was my stay.

19 He brought me forth also into a ³⁷broad place; He rescued me, because ³⁸He delighted in me.

20 The LORD has ³⁹rewarded me according to my righteousness; According to the ⁴⁰cleanness of my hands He has recompensed me.

21 For I have ⁴¹kept the ways of the LORD, And have ⁴²not wickedly departed from my God.

22 For all ⁴³His ordinances were before me, And I did not put away His ⁴⁴statutes from me.

23 I was also ⁴⁵blameless with Him, And I ⁴⁶kept myself from my iniquity.

24 Therefore the LORD has ⁴⁷recompensed me according to my righteousness, According to the cleanness of my hands in His eyes.

25 With ⁴⁸the kind You show Yourself kind; With the blameless ⁴⁹You show Yourself blameless;

26 With the pure You show Yourself ⁵⁰pure, And with the crooked ⁵¹You show Yourself astute.

27 For You ⁵²save an afflicted people, But ⁵³haughty eyes You abase.

28 For You ⁵⁴light my lamp; The LORD my God ⁵⁵illumines my darkness.

29 For by You I can ⁵⁶run upon a troop; And by my God I can ⁵⁷leap over a wall.

30 As for God, His way is ⁵⁸blameless; The ⁵⁹word of the LORD is tried; He is a ⁶⁰shield to all who take refuge in Him.

31 For ⁶¹who is God, but the LORD? And who is a ⁶²rock, except our God,

32 The God who ⁶³girds me with strength And makes my way ⁶⁴blameless?

33 He ⁶⁵makes my feet like hinds' feet, And ⁶⁶sets me upon my high places.

34 He ⁶⁷trains my hands for battle, So that my arms can ⁶⁸bend a bow of bronze.

35 You have also given me ⁶⁹the shield of Your salvation, And Your ⁷⁰right hand upholds me; And ⁷¹Your gentleness makes me great.

36 You ⁷²enlarge my steps under me, And my ⁷³feet have not slipped.

37 I ⁷⁴pursued my enemies and overtook them, And I did not turn back ⁷⁵until they were consumed.

38 I shattered them, so that they were ⁷⁶not able to rise; They fell ⁷⁷under my feet.

39 For You have ⁷⁸girded me with strength for battle; You have ⁷⁹subdued under me those who rose up against me.

40 You have also made my enemies ⁸⁰turn their backs to me, And I ⁸¹destroyed those who hated me.

41 They cried for help, but there was ⁸²none to save, Even to the LORD, but ⁸³He did not answer them.

42 Then I beat them fine as the ⁸⁴dust before * the wind; I emptied them out as the mire of the streets.

43 You have delivered me from the ⁸⁵contentions of the people; You have placed me as ⁸⁶head of the nations; A ⁸⁷people whom I have not known serve me.

44 As soon as they hear *, they obey me; Foreigners * ⁸⁸submit to me.

45 Foreigners * ⁸⁹fade away, And ⁹⁰come trembling out of their fortresses.

46 The LORD ⁹¹lives, and blessed be ⁹²my rock; And exalted be ⁹³the God of my salvation,

47 The God who ⁹⁴executes vengeance for me, And ⁹⁵subdues peoples under me.

48 He ⁹⁶delivers me from my enemies; Surely You ⁹⁷lift me above those who rise up against me; You rescue me from the ⁹⁸violent man.

49 Therefore * I will ⁹⁹give thanks to You among the nations, O LORD, And I will ¹⁰⁰sing praises to Your name.

50 He gives great ¹⁰¹deliverance to His king, And shows lovingkindness to ¹⁰²His anointed, To David and ¹⁰³his descendants forever *.

Psalms 18 Commentary

Chapter 18

David rejoices in the deliverances God wrought for him. (1-19) He takes the comfort of his integrity, which God had cleared up. (20-28) He gives to God the glory of all his mighty deeds. (29-50)

Verses 1-19 The first words, "I will love thee, O Lord, my strength," are the scope and contents of the psalm. Those that truly love God, may triumph in him as their Rock and Refuge, and may with confidence call upon him. It is good for us to observe all the circumstances of a mercy which magnify the power of God and his goodness to us in it. David was a praying man, and God was found a prayer-hearing God. If we pray as he did, we shall speed as he did. God's manifestation of his presence is very fully described, ver. ( 7-15 ) . Little appeared of man, but much of God, in these deliverances. It is not possible to apply to the history of the son of Jesse those awful, majestic, and stupendous words which are used through this description of the Divine manifestation. Every part of so solemn a scene of terrors tells us, a greater than David is here. God will not only deliver his people out of their troubles in due time, but he will bear them up under their troubles in the mean time. Can we meditate on ver. 18, without directing one thought to Gethsemane and Calvary? Can we forget that it was in the hour of Christ's deepest calamity, when Judas betrayed, when his friends forsook, when the multitude derided him, and the smiles of his Father's love were withheld, that the powers of darkness prevented him? The sorrows of death surrounded him, in his distress he prayed, ( Hebrews 5:7 ) . God made the earth to shake and tremble, and the rocks to cleave, and brought him out, in his resurrection, because he delighted in him and in his undertaking.

Verses 20-28 Those that forsake the ways of the Lord, depart from their God. But though conscious to ourselves of many a false step, let there not be a wicked departure from our God. David kept his eye upon the rule of God's commands. Constant care to keep from that sin, whatever it be, which most easily besets us, proves that we are upright before God. Those who show mercy to others, even they need mercy. Those who are faithful to God, shall find him all that to them which he has promised to be. The words of the Lord are pure words, very sure to be depended on, and very sweet to be delighted in. Those who resist God, and walk contrary to him, shall find that he will walk contrary to them, ( Leviticus 26:21-24 ) . The gracious recompence of which David spoke, may generally be expected by those who act from right motives. Hence he speaks comfort to the humble, and terror to the proud; "Thou wilt bring down high looks." And he speaks encouragement to himself; "Thou wilt light my candle:" thou wilt revive and comfort my sorrowful spirit; thou wilt guide my way, that I may avoid the snares laid for me. Thou wilt light my candle to work by, and give me an opportunity of serving thee. Let those that walk in darkness, and labour under discouragements, take courage; God himself will be a Light to them.

Verses 29-50 When we praise for one mercy, we must observe the many more, with which we have been compassed all our days. Many things had contributed to David's advancement, and he owns the hand of God in them all, to teach us to do likewise. In verse Verse 32 , and the following verses, are the gifts of God to the spiritual warrior, whereby he is prepared for the contest, after the example of his victorious Leader. Learn that we must seek release being made through Christ, shall be rejected. In David the type, we behold out of trouble through Christ. The prayer put up, without reconciliation Jesus our Redeemer, conflicting with enemies, compassed with sorrows and with floods of ungodly men, enduring not only the pains of death, but the wrath of God for us; yet calling upon the Father with strong cries and tears; rescued from the grave; proceeding to reconcile, or to put under his feet all other enemies, till death, the last enemy, shall be destroyed. We should love the Lord, our Strength, and our Salvation; we should call on him in every trouble, and praise him for every deliverance; we should aim to walk with him in all righteousness and true holiness, keeping from sin. If we belong to him, he conquers and reigns for us, and we shall conquer and reign through him, and partake of the mercy of our anointed King, which is promised to all his seed for evermore. Amen.

Cross References

• 1. Psalms 59:17
• 2. Deuteronomy 32:18; 1 Samuel 2:2; Psalms 18:31, 46; Psalms 28:1; Psalms 31:3; Psalms 42:9; Psalms 71:3; Psalms 78:15
• 3. Psalms 144:2
• 4. Psalms 19:14
• 5. Psalms 28:7; Psalms 33:20; Psalms 59:11; Psalms 84:9, 11; Proverbs 30:5
• 6. Psalms 75:10
• 7. Psalms 59:9
• 8. Psalms 48:1; Psalms 96:4; Psalms 145:3
• 9. Psalms 34:6
• 10. Psalms 116:3
• 11. Psalms 69:2; Psalms 124:3, 4
• 12. Psalms 116:3
• 13. Psalms 50:15; Psalms 120:1
• 14. Psalms 3:4
• 15. Psalms 34:15
• 16. Judges 5:4; Psalms 68:7, 8; Isaiah 13:13; Haggai 2:6
• 17. Psalms 114:4, 6
• 18. Psalms 50:3
• 19. Psalms 144:5
• 20. Psalms 97:2
• 21. Psalms 80:1; Psalms 99:1
• 22. Psalms 104:3
• 23. Deuteronomy 4:11
• 24. Psalms 97:2
• 25. Psalms 104:2
• 26. Psalms 97:3; Psalms 140:10; Habakkuk 3:4
• 27. Psalms 29:3; Psalms 104:7
• 28. Psalms 144:6; Habakkuk 3:11
• 29. Psalms 106:9
• 30. Psalms 76:6
• 31. Psalms 18:8
• 32. Psalms 144:7
• 33. Psalms 32:6
• 34. Psalms 59:1
• 35. Psalms 35:10; Psalms 142:6
• 36. Psalms 59:16
• 37. Psalms 16:8
• 38. Psalms 4:1; Psalms 31:8; Psalms 118:5
• 39. Psalms 37:23; Psalms 41:11
• 40. 1 Samuel 24:19; Job 33:26; Psalms 7:8
• 41. Job 22:30; Psalms 24:4
• 42. Psalms 37:34; Psalms 119:33; Proverbs 8:32
• 43. 2 Chronicles 34:33; Psalms 119:102
• 44. Psalms 119:30
• 45. Psalms 119:83
• 46. Psalms 18:32
• 47. Psalms 19:12, 13; Psalms 25:11; Psalms 66:18
• 48. 1 Samuel 26:23; Psalms 18:20
• 49. 1 Kings 8:32; Psalms 62:12; Matthew 5:7
• 50. Psalms 18:30
• 51. Job 25:5; Habakkuk 1:13
• 52. Lev 26:23, 24, 27, 28; Proverbs 3:34
• 53. Psalms 72:12
• 54. Psalms 101:5; Proverbs 6:17
• 55. 1 Kings 15:4; Job 18:6; Psalms 132:17
• 56. Psalms 27:1
• 57. Psalms 118:10-12
• 58. Psalms 18:33; Psalms 40:2
• 59. Deuteronomy 32:4; Psalms 19:7; Psalms 145:17; Revelation 15:3
• 60. Psalms 12:6
• 61. Psalms 17:7; Psalms 91:4
• 62. Deuteronomy 32:39; 1 Samuel 2:2; Psalms 86:8-10; Isaiah 45:5
• 63. Deuteronomy 32:31; Psalms 18:2; Psalms 62:2
• 64. Psalms 18:39; Isaiah 45:5
• 65. Psalms 18:23
• 66. Habakkuk 3:19
• 67. Deuteronomy 32:13
• 68. Psalms 144:1
• 69. Job 29:20
• 70. Psalms 33:20
• 71. Psalms 63:8; Psalms 119:117
• 72. Psalms 138:6
• 73. Psalms 18:33
• 74. Psalms 66:9; Proverbs 4:12
• 75. Psalms 44:5
• 76. Psalms 37:20
• 77. Psalms 36:12
• 78. Psalms 47:3
• 79. Psalms 18:32
• 80. Psalms 18:47
• 81. Psalms 21:12
• 82. Psalms 94:23
• 83. Psalms 50:22
• 84. Job 27:9; Proverbs 1:28
• 85. Psalms 83:13
• 86. 2 Samuel 3:1; 2 Samuel 19:9; Psalms 35:1
• 87. 2 Samuel 8:1-18; Psalms 89:27
• 88. Isaiah 55:5
• 89. Psalms 66:3
• 90. Psalms 37:2
• 91. Micah 7:17
• 92. Job 19:25
• 93. Psalms 18:2
• 94. Psalms 51:14
• 95. Psalms 94:1
• 96. Psalms 18:43; Psalms 47:3; Psalms 144:2
• 97. Psalms 3:7
• 98. Psalms 27:6; Psalms 59:1
• 99. Psalms 11:5
• 100. Romans 15:9
• 101. Psalms 108:1
• 102. Psalms 21:1; Psalms 144:10
• 103. Psalms 28:8
• 104. Psalms 89:4

Footnotes

• [a]. Or "crag"
• [b]. Or "destruction;" Heb "Belial"
• [c]. Or "were assailing" or "terrifying"
• [d]. I.e. the nether world
• [e]. Or "in His wrath"
• [f]. Or "pavilion"
• [g]. Lit "confused"
• [h]. Or "uncovered"
• [i]. Lit "complete;" or "having integrity;" or "perfect"
• [j]. V 23, note 1
• [k]. Lit "twisted"
• [l]. Or "crush a troop"
• [m]. V 23, note 1
• [n]. Or "has made"
• [o]. Lit "complete;" or "having integrity"
• [p]. Or "condescension"
• [q]. Lit "ankles"
• [r]. Lit "caused to bow down"
• [s]. Or "silenced"
• [t]. Lit "deceive me;" i.e. give feigned obedience
• [u]. Lit "fastnesses"
• [v]. I.e. victories; lit "salvations"
• [w]. Lit "seed"

Chapter Summary

To the chief Musician, [a Psalm] of David. This is the same with that in 2 Samuel 22:1, with some variations, omissions, and alterations:

the servant of the Lord; not only by creation, nor merely by regeneration, but by office, as king of Israel, being put into it by the Lord, and acting in it in submission and obedience to him; just as the apostles under the New Testament, on account of their office, so style themselves in their epistles:

who spake unto the Lord the words of this song; that is, who delivered and sung this song in so many express words, in public, before all the congregation of Israel, to the honour and glory of God:

in the day [that] the Lord delivered him from the hand of all his enemies, and from the hand of Saul, Not that this psalm was composed and sung the selfsame day that David was delivered from Saul, and set upon the throne; for it seems to have been written in his old age, at the close of his days; for immediately after it, in the second book of Samuel, it follows, "now these be the last words of David," 2 Samuel 23:1: but the sense is, that whereas David had many enemies, and particularly Saul, who was his greatest enemy, the Lord delivered him from them all, and especially from him, from him first, and then from all the rest; which when he reflected upon in his last days, he sat down and wrote this psalm, and then sung it in public, having delivered it into the hands of the chief musician for that purpose. There are two passages cited out of it in the New Testament, and applied to Christ; Psalm 18:2, in Hebrews 2:13, and Psalm 18:49 in Romans 15:9; and there are many things in it that very well agree with him; he is eminently the "servant" of the Lord as Mediator; he was encompassed with the snares and sorrows of death and hell, and with the floods of ungodly men, when in the garden and on the cross God was his helper and deliverer, as man; and he was victorious over all enemies, sin, Satan, the world, death and hell; as the subject of this psalm is all along represented: and to Christ it does most properly belong to be the head of the Heathen, whose voluntary subjects the Gentiles are said to be, Psalm 18:43; and which is expressed in much the same language as the like things are in Isaiah 55:4; which is a clear and undoubted prophecy of the Messiah; to which may be added, that the Lord's Anointed, the King Messiah, and who is also called David, is expressly mentioned in Psalm 18:50; and which is applied to the Messiah by the Jews {q} as Psalm 18:32 is paraphrased of him by the Targum on it;

and he said; the following words:

{q} Echa Rabbati, fol. 50. 2. & Midrash Tillim in Tzeror Hammor, fol. 47. 3.